Ralph A. Medina Honored with Military Banner

Ralph A. Medina, veteran of the US Army was recently honored with a new military banner. Medina’s banner is now hanging high on the southwest corner of La Cadena and M Street in Colton. Medina, a true coltonite, was born on 5th and N Street in South Colton and is a graduate of the 1948 class of Colton High School. According to Ruth Martinez, Medina’s daughter, he was “proud to be a CHS Yellow Jacket!” On Jan. 21, 1949, at 19 years old, he volunteered for the US Army. He served for three-and-a-half years and completed a total of 8 weeks of basic training in Fort Ord. Medina came back home once before being shipped to Peace Time Occupation duty in Kyoto, Japan. During this time he spent 18 days at sea on a small ship. He was assigned to the 304th Signal Battalion while in Japan and stayed there for fifteen months. In July 1950 when the Korean Conflict began, the 8th Army was sent to Korea where the 304th Signal Battalion mission was on task to provide communications for headquarters and the 8th Army. Medina was promoted Staff Sergeant while in Korea and spent sixteen months there, for a total of thirty-one months overseas. After his sixteen-month tour in Korea he was sent to Camp Luis Obispo in California for approximately 4-5 months prior to being honorably discharged from the army on June 23, 1952. Following his discharge, and after numerous auto upholstery jobs, he decided to open Ralph's Auto Upholstery and Glass in South Colton. “Ralph is an individual who has never forgotten the friends and family in his life who encouraged him to keep his business open during difficult times he encountered with the economy,” Martinez mentioned. “There are too many dear friends and family to mention,” she said. However, a few friends such as Don Abril (Abril's Auto Wrecking), Ernie Colunga, Louie and Rachel Romo (Dell's Drive-In) were very supportive during these tough times. Medina retired in the early 1990s. He has been married to his wife Ruth for over sixty-one years now and they have eight children, twenty-seven grandchildren, and twenty-five great-grandchildren. Medina loves spending time with is family. Martinez shared, “especially on Sunday mornings when everyone stops by for breakfast.”